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Bristol Fashion Week returned to The Mall and Cribs Causeway this week, armed with a pampering zone, glasses of bubbly and catwalk shows to showcase the S/S13 trends we can expect to see on the high street this season.

Unfortunately the weather hasn’t caught up with the calendar yet, so I’m still daydreaming about when I can wear shorts, bare legs and floral dresses without freezing. However that didn’t stop me mentally picking out my favourite pieces, including this Somerset by Alice Temperley dress from John Lewis, above.

Unlike last year’s show, I had a far more enjoyable journey, hitching a lift with Nicola and arriving just in time to grab a mini cupcake, a glass of bubbly and take our seats for the show. Brands on the catwalk included River Island, Timberland, Marks & Spencer and John Lewis, the latter of which had a fantastic floral scene, where oversized gerberas were used as colourful parasols.

Mark Heyes and Andrew Barton presented the catwalk show with their usual banter, and monochrome was one of the most popular trends, appearing in several scenes and on the cotton tote goody bags we received after the show. Although I have a hankering for a pair of black and white striped trousers, the scenes I enjoyed the most were the aforementioned florals, and the neon scene, also by John Lewis, including a gorgeous pleated Ted Baker maxi skirt with a neon pink trim.

The perky models, summery clothes and good company were the perfect antidote to a long week of miserable weather and while I’m still happy in jumpers and leggings for now, I’m looking forward to shopping the S/S trends soon!

The shows are still running across the weekend, so check out the BFW website for more info on ticket prices and show times. Have you been to BFW yet? What was your favourite look?

As promised, following on from my first post, here are a few more snaps from this year’s Bristol Fashion Week at Cribbs Causeway, including tropical prints, kimonos, beachwear and aquamarine influences. I think I’m definatly going to have to explore the S/S12 collections from Oasis and Jigsaw, which, according to Mr Mark Heyes himself, is ‘one of the best Chanel rip-offs I’ve ever seen’. I look forward to how other high street stores will approach the season’s key trends, and I’ll be keeping a close eye on Zara and New Look.

Did you attend BFW? What was your favourite outfit, or moment from the show? Let me know by commenting below…

Last Friday, along with 200 of Bristol’s best dressed fashion fanatics, I took my seat at Bristol Fashion Week’s first ever Live Blogging Event. Cribbs Causeway’s biannual event presents each fashion season from a high street point of view, through catwalk shows, pampering treats and discounts and competitions for all the brands that take part – hurrah!

I love going to BFW every season and I was interested to see how the Mall team would approach their first blogger dominated show. I didn’t see many laptops inside the tent but there was plenty of tweeting going on – particularly whenever a male model came on stage. M&S provided the pink fizz and fondant fancies, both of which hit the spot after a loooong week at work!

I took my seat with the lovely Amy from Annie by Amy and Charlotte of Charlotte’s Web and it wasn’t long before the lights went down and hosts Mark Heyes and Andrew Barton appeared on stage. This duo have been presenting BFW for yonks and I love the way Mark’s perkiness is tempered with Andrew’s bitting comments and the general banter between them.

Each scene of the show covered a key S/S12 trend, including pastels, sports lux and tribal prints, with the more predictable high street summer staples – wedding-friendly prom dresses, suits and beachwear. The difference this year is that with a blogger-friendly audience, most of us knew what to expect – those that went to LFW last September saw first-hand what trends designers were loving, and we’ve seen enough articles, trend reports and outfit posts to know that pastels are So Hot Right Now.

BFW's opening scene, courtesy of John Lewis

It made sense then, that BFW chose to open with a candy cane scene from John Lewis, complete with bubblegum blue lips and giant cellophane collars. Half a dozen models striking robotic poses in pretty pastel dresses was the perfect way to open the show and I felt there was a heavy influence of Katy Perry, Meadham Kirchhoff, Lady Gaga and Louis Vuitton in there.

While I’m not sure I could pull off pastels, I did fall in love with the tribal print scene, mid-century Mad Men-esque outfits from Jigsaw, and gorgeous tropical prints by Oasis. I also loved the production values (is that even the correct term, or does that sound like the most pompous thing you’ve ever heard?) Basically, I loved the music, the graphic backdrops and the tightness of each scene – this season the added dance numbers and acting didn’t overpower the show, or the clothes. What did you think of the show?

I’ve got lots more photos to come, so there will be another post shortly, but for now here are some of my best bits of BFW S/S12…

BFW hosts Andrew Barton and Mark Heyes

Candy colours from John Lewis

The UK's biggest event this year, tackled by Next and some semi-naked male models

BFW scene four - tribal prints from M&S

Ignore the model and look at what she's carrying! I'm a little bit in love with this Radley bag...

... the Happy Camper Leather Grab Handbag from Radley. It's not my usual cup of tea, but there is something about this bag that I just love : )

As promised here are a few more snaps from Bristol Fashion Week. I’m loving the colour blocking trends as seen at Coast and John Lewis and the 60s style Burberry inspired winter coats from Wallis – not a usual shopping haunt of mine but with one of the best fuchsia cocoon coats I’ve seen all season. Have you been yet? If you couldn’t get a ticket don’t forget to check out the shows at Cabot Circus this weekend too…

Peacock colours at Coast

Republic shows the crowd how to 'work it' in denim, plaid and chunky knits

Yesterday I took a bi-annual pilgrimage to The Mall at Cribbs Causeway for Bristol Fashion Week A/W11, eager to how high street brands have reworked this season’s trends. Each season BFW guides shoppers through key trends with the help of catwalk shows, shopping discounts and pampering treats. As always the shows are presented by TV stylist Mark Heyes and celebrity hairdresser Andrew Barton, who were on top form again at yesterday’s show.

With retailers including M&S, John Lewis, Republic and Accessorize the catwalk show was packed with style, sass and on-trend outfits. Trends were diverse, including 40s vintage, 70s glamour, colour blocking and even a fetish collection using sheer fabrics and leather dresses from H&M.

Marks & Spencer played with vintage, feminine styles and bold polka dot patterns – mimicking Stella McCartney’s now iconic A/W11 dresses and I fell in love with their black spotty tights. According to those in the know (Heyes) these are an exact match to the ones worn at Stella’s show. Another collection I fell in love with was French Connection. Tailoring, blazers, shorts suits, see left, and sheer blouses all played a part, offset by playful black bowler hats. Gone are the days of suggestive t-shirt slogans and instead the brand continues to do what it does best – sleek lines and grown up cuts.

I’m a big fan of River Island and seeing their interpretation of 70s glamour was exciting as it it ticked so many fashionable boxes; clashing prints, muted tones, shearling coats and Missoni style zig-zag designs. Kimono cover ups extended the oriental theme that carried us through S/S11 and on the menswear front River Island delivered chunky knit jumpers that would look equally at home under a Christmas tree or next to a campfire in the midwest.

I took what felt like a million photos at the show, some of which you can see below, the rest of which I’ll post tomorrow. Did you go to the show? If show share the love by telling me what A/W11 pieces you’re lusting after below…

Shows continue throughout the weekend but spaces are going fast so don’t forget to visit the BFW website for more info on show times and ticket prices. If you can’t make it check back here for more photos from the show.